Wednesday, February 27, 2013

The first vitally
important thing to note about the Creed’s statement here is the use of the word
“holy” rather than “Roman.” There was no “Roman” Catholic Church when the Creed
was formed! The Church of the New Testament is not Roman Catholic. Says Church
historian Philip Schaff,

There is a
vast difference between Catholicism and Romanism. The former embraces all
Christians, whether Roman, Greek, or Protestant; the latter is in its very name
local, sectarian, exclusive. The holy Catholic Church is an article of faith;
the Roman Church is not even named in the ancient Creeds. Catholicism extends
through all Christian centuries; Romanism proper dates from the Council of
Trent [1545-63]. Medieval Catholicism looked towards the Reformation; Romanism
excludes and condemns the Reformation.[1]

As we shall
see, though it is hard to pinpoint an exact date when the Creed was finalised,
it can be seen that it was formulated long before the Council of Trent, and, as
we shall see shortly, before the formation of the universal papacy. Alan Cairns
says,

Apostles’
Creed: A statement of faith put in its final form around the end of the second
century. It was not written by the apostles, but is a summary of Christian
doctrine.[2]

However,
the Oxford English Reference Dictionary enlarges on the date where it says,

Apostles’
Creed: a statement of Christian belief used in the Western Church, dating
(with minor variations in form) from the fourth century.[3]

While
we are on it, the Oxford English Reference Dictionary defines the words “holy” and “catholic”
as follows,

The
Church therefore is holy or sacred because it belongs to Christ and it is catholic
because it is universal. Thus to the unbiased the Creed mentions nothing about
the Church being universally “Roman.” To be sure this is a contentious issue
for some, but in this book I am only dealing with what the Creed says and not
what some might wish to read into it. Roman Catholicism was developed by the
papacy. And, for the record Francis Nigel Lee sets the record straight in bold
terms where he says,

"There was no Papacy in
the Early Church. As predicted in Holy Scripture, it would arise only later –
and to test and strengthen True Christians. Daniel chapters 7 to 12; Second
Thessalonians chapter 2; First John chapters 2 to 4; Revelation chapters 11 to
18.

"This occurred especially
from about A.D. 600 onward. It climaxed around A.D. 1215, when the Romish
doctrine of transubstantiation was enunciated officially."[5]

The
Reformation of the Church began on October 31, 1517 with Martin Luther posting
his Ninety-Five Theses. Luther (and the other Reformers such as John Calvin
after him) sought to bring the Church as it was then back to the clear teaching
of the Bible, away from the errors that had crept in over the centuries. What
could be wrong with that? The Council of Trent began pronouncing curses on any
who dared differ from its general consensus and adherence to Church tradition –
even where those traditions (such as Indulgences, Purgatory, and
Transubstantiation)contradicted the
clear teaching of God’s Word! Loraine Boettner brings things into perspective
where he says,

"Roman Catholics often attempt to represent
Protestantism as something comparatively new, as having originated with Martin
Luther and John Calvin in the sixteenth century. We do indeed owe a great debt
to those leaders and to the Reformation movement that swept over Europe at that
time. But the basic principles and the common system of doctrine taught be
those Reformers and by the evangelical churches ever since go back to the New
Testament and to the first century Christian Church. Protestantism as it
emerged in the 16th century was not the beginning of something new,
but a return to Biblical Christianity and to the simplicity of the Apostolic
church from which the Roman Church had long since departed."[6]

Let us
again look at the words, “The Holy Catholic Church.” We have seen that word
“holy” refers to the nature of the Church and the word “Catholic” refers to the
extent of the Church on earth. Let us now focus our attention on the word
“Church.” Says Alan Cairns,

"The word ekklesia
is derived from two words ek,
“out,” and kaleo, “to call.” In its
broadest and basic sense, it refers to any assembly of people (cf. Acts
19:32,39,41), but its usual application in the Scriptures is, of course, to
Christian assemblies of the kletoi,
“the called ones.”"[7]

The Holy Catholic Church in the Apostles’ Creed therefore
is not referring to a building but to a people, holy, and called by God. “As He who called you is holy, you also be holy
in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be
holy, for I am holy” 1 Peter 1:15-16.

This “calling” is in line with what we looked at
earlier under the head, “I believe in the Holy Ghost,” where we read,

"All those
whom God hath predestinated unto life, and those only, He is pleased, in His
appointed and accepted time, effectually to call, by His Word and Spirit, out
of that state of sin and death in which they are by nature, to grace and
salvation by Jesus Christ."[8]

We have
already noted that the Church, like in the parable of the field of wheat and
tares, also includes some who may not be true Christians. However, God, by the
proclamation of the Gospel, calls those who belong to Him. “Faith comes by
hearing, and hearing comes by the word of God” Romans 10:17. I have listed the
three crucial “Marks of the Church” in the following,

"The particular churches
that go to make up the holy catholic or universal or visible church are
governed by Jesus Christ through church representatives, i.e., Presbyters,
a.k.a. as Elders. These Elders, Preaching and Ruling, are to ensure that the
doctrine of the Gospel is preached and embraced in their respective churches.
And, that the two Sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are duly and
properly administered. And, that public worship is performed in accordance with
the Scriptures.

"Therefore the health of
the church(s) on earth may be measured by these three things: 1. The purity of
the Gospel. 2. The purity of the Sacraments. And 3. The purity of worship. The
checks and balances in the Presbyterian system of Elder’s courts (e.g., Acts
14:23 & 15:2) serve to preserve the purity of these three items. These are
crucial for a healthy church."[9]

Monday, February 11, 2013

St Patrick was a Celto-Briton. The
Gospel began to reach the British Isles and Ireland by AD 35, (allegedly the
Apostle James to Ireland and Joseph of Arimathea to Britain.)Though the exact date and place of his birth
are disputed it is generally held that Patrick was born in Cumbria or perhaps
further north near Dumbarton circa 387. He was taken from Britain to Ireland
when he was sixteen by Irish raiders, where he spent six years as a slave
before returning to Britain. As per the Scriptures (and as it is for every true
believer in the Gospel) Patrick became a saint the moment he first believed,
and, as such, returned to Ireland around 432. Though Patrick is often credited
with bringing Christianity to Ireland it is more accurate to say that he
converted many of the Irish (including Druids) to Christianity and also
codified their laws.

Before returning to Ireland to found a
church Patrick, like his married grandfather before him, had become a Presbyter, i.e., he was ordained an
Elder or Bishop (synonymous terms). His
father was a Deacon. Of the founding of a church in Ireland the Church Historian,
Francis Nigel Lee, says, ‘The Church founded by St. Patrick was identical in
doctrine with the Churches of Britain and Gaul and other branches of the
Western Church.’[1]
A couple of centuries intervened before Romanism began making inroads into
Britain and Ireland, until, at the Synod of Whitby (664), the Celtic Church (to
which Patrick had belonged) capitulated to the Roman Church.

‘Patrick the
Celt’s home language was Britonnic… He wrote in rather poor Latin. He did this
also, if not chiefly, in order that he might gain the widest possible
readership.’[2]Patrick
wrote of his own conversion, ‘I, Patrick, a sinner… did not, indeed, know the true
God; and I was taken into captivity in Ireland with many thousands of people… And
there the Lord opened my mind to an awareness of my unbelief, in order that,
even so late, I might remember my transgressions and turn with all my heart to
the Lord my God, who had regard for my insignificance and pitied my youth and
ignorance. And He watched over me before I knew Him, and before I learned sense
or even distinguished between good and evil, and He protected me, and consoled
me as a father would his son.’[3]

Once converted Patrick, believing the Father
and the Son and the Holy Spirit are one God, reputedly made use of the Irish shamrock
to explain His triune nature, saying, ‘Is it one leaf or three? As with God, it
is both.’ There are many translations of Patrick’s prayer (originally in Irish),
a hymn known as ‘The Shield (or Breastplate) of St Patrick,’ and also, ‘The
Lorica’ or ‘The Deer’s Cry.’ It contains sound and emotively edifying theology!
The following is a sample: ‘Christ be with me, Christ
within me, / Christ behind me, Christ before me, / Christ beside me, Christ to win me, / Christ to comfort and restore
me. / Christ beneath me, Christ above me, / Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
/ Christ in hearts of all that love me, / Christ in mouth of friend and
stranger.
/ I bind unto myself the Name, / The strong Name of
the Trinity, / By invocation of the same, / The Three in One and One in Three.
/ By Whom all nature hath creation, / Eternal Father, Spirit, Word: / Praise to
the Lord of my salvation, / Salvation is of Christ the Lord.’